The Structural Reform of The Psychotherapy Guidelines in Germany

Objectives Our study investigates how psychotherapists implement and assess the newly introduced elements of the structural reform of the psychotherapy guideline in Germany.Methods We asked psychotherapists about their experiences with the structural reform in semi-structured interviews. The data was analysed using qualitative content analysis.Results A total of 37 h of audio material from 41 psychotherapists were available. The interviews showed that acute treatment and relapse prevention are welcomed by psychotherapists. However, due to lack of appointment capacity as well as conceptual barriers, these are rarely used. Concerning psycho- therapeutic assessment consultations, the opinions were heterogeneous.Conclusion Individual aspects of the new care elements are assessed positively. However, these can only be implemented to a limited extent and are not sufficient to significantly improve the strained supply situation.